TheHawaiiChannel.com<\/p>\n
Victim’s Grandfather Blasts MySpace.com For Problems<\/strong><\/p>\n POSTED: 3:39 pm HST September 20, 2006<\/p>\n HONOLULU — A man who met a teenage boy online and then sexually assaulted him was sentenced to 10 years in prison after pleading guilty to several crimes.<\/p>\n Joseph Colasacco, 30, apologized to the family of the 14-year-old boy he sexually assaulted and told them he is not a monster.<\/p>\n “I screwed up. I know I did. I made some very bad decisions,” Colasacco said.<\/p>\n In a plea agreement, to spare the victim from testifying, Colasacco pleaded guilty to all 13 counts, including second-degree sexual assault and electronic enticement of a child.<\/p>\n The two met early this year on the popular Web site MySpace.com. In February, the teen’s stepfather discovered Colasacco in the boy’s bed at their Kahala home.<\/p>\n “This defendant was sneaky, and he was demanding. And, throughout all of this, he waged a campaign, so to speak, of control over this victim,” prosecutor Jean Ireton said.<\/p>\n “His adolescence has been stolen from him, and he’s unsettled and he’s not doing well in school,” the victim’s grandfather said in court.<\/p>\n The teen’s grandfather also criticized the MySpace Web site, saying it set up the perfect place for pedophiles.<\/p>\n “They left a path of destruction across this country,” the grandfather said.<\/p>\n “I should have never been online chatting. You’ll never find me in another chat room ever,” Colasacco said.<\/p>\n Colasacco said he assumed the victim was the legal age of 16, but prosecutors said he knew all along the boy was underage.<\/p>\n During sentencing, Judge Michael Wilson considered Colasacco’s military service and clean record before the incident, but said he gave the defendant 10 years in prison because of the severity of the crimes.<\/p>\n Under current Hawaii law, most of those convicted of electronic enticement of minors get robation. So, the teen’s family was pleased Colasacco got jail time.<\/p>\n Copyright 2006 by TheHawaiiChannel.com<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" TheHawaiiChannel.com Man Who Sexually Assaulted Boy Sentenced To Prison Victim’s Grandfather Blasts MySpace.com For Problems POSTED: 3:39 pm HST September 20, 2006 HONOLULU — A man who met a teenage boy online and then sexually assaulted him was sentenced to 10 years in prison after pleading guilty to several crimes. Joseph Colasacco, 30, apologized to … <\/p>\n